Need info: Wind turbine impact on whitetails, turkey, grouse, etc.

Given that whitetail and mule deer will live happily in cities and towns, I can't imagine a wind turbine being any sort of significant issue for deer. Unlike some above ground pipelines or roads and such, windmills and wind farms should pose no appreciable barrier to their movements or significantly impact their forage except for the pad sight and roadway (usually graveled).

Animals, like deer, will get used to them. I know from my own experience that they don't bother hogs. I have killed a bunch of hogs on wind farms.

 

I often work around wind and solar operations both during construction and after implementation for utility construction. I have noticed little impact to whitetail activity beyond what would be expected with the disturbance to natural vegetation in the construction footprint. In many cases, I've seen elevated activity due to fresh vegetation regrowth and fresh minerals brought to the surface through footing and access construction.

These facilities generally feature locked access gates, as copper theft and tampering are high concerns. Easements are interesting documents. They are a legal form of partial ownership of your property. As suggested, you should absolutely retain legal representation. I've been privy to some numbers paid out, and in this case (agricultural row cropland) they exceeded market value for the permanent footprint and ran roughly 60% on indirectly affected acreage within the overall project footprint. I also have an active minerals exploration lease on my hunting property. This includes a permanent access easement and provision for temporary easement as well as restoration, mitigation, and compensation clauses and a sunset date. They paid a significant lump sum and drilled 2 holes the first year. All restoration and reforestation was completed in the first growing season above and beyond expectations. Had I been a willing seller, they could have purchased the property twice for the capital I estimated they spent.

 

I don't know the impact on game. But, I am a farm owner, a hunter and a retired attorney with legal experience regarding wind leases. Not telling you what to do, but give it a lot of thought. The leases are lengthy and complex and must be carefully read to understand what you're giving up. You will be granting somebody a lot of control over uses of your property, for years and years, and it likely won't be whomever you deal with in the beginning. It's not uncommon for there to be prohibitions on hunting or shooting around the towers. Not sure I've ever seen a wind lease with a plan on how the towers will be taken down when they wear out, break or become obsolete. I'll just say there will never be any on my land.

 

We decided against them but my neighbor didn't. Our place starts to the left of the fence and as you can see the turbines are fairly close. We haven't noticed any effect whatsoever on deer or hog habits. They continue going into that field to graze. I don't like the turbines and they have caused quite a controversy between the landowners wanting them and those of us who would prefer not to have them. One of the main drawbacks besides visual appeal is the service guys continually being on your land to work on the turbines.

 

I have had to stop shooting, go down range and chase deer and turkey off the firing range where I shoot. They aren't bothered by gunfire. I would think that it could have a temporary impact on their behavior. But I would also think that after they got accustomed to them it wouldn't matter much.

But that is just a highly unscientific opinion.

 

Your neighbor is making a bunch of money each year, about $4-8K per year per turbine and it looks like he has several.

 

Yes, outline of the lease presented to me (haven't seen an actual legal document yet) is $4k annually per installed megawatt or a percentage of gross revenue generated by the installed turbines. It looks like 1.5 MW is a standard turbine, so that's $6k per if I opt for the flat rate. They also pay per foot of buried line and access road (and that part can add up fast). I'm not interested allowing access to my land for $6k per year. I want to see a plan that has at least two turbines on my land and some line/road or it isn't worth it.

 

No joke. I know exactly how much he is making. It wasn't worth it for us. Additionally, they literally have destroyed the area roads.

 

The point is that it is definitely worth it for your neighbor. Roads will be fixed by the county. That isn't uncommon with new construction. Let's face it, you didn't opt to not get turbines because you were worried about the county roads. You did it for your own reasons concerning your property and it wasn't worth it for you. That is fine. You were talking about the downsides without talking about the major upside which is that your neighbor has a bunch of towers and will be making bank, plus having a maintained firebreak.

 

These turbines have been there for five years and are most certainly not new construction. The roads have not been fixed and it is not the county's responsibility to do so. The company that erected the turbines is supposed to maintain the roads per agreement. . I really haven't knocked them and they really don't bother me that much. I'm merely stating the facts for the county in which I own land. Firebreak? What firebreak? Not everyone's life revolves around money. We work hard to maintain habitat for deer and quail so the turbines were of no interest for us.

 

What roads are you talking about that need to be fixed? Sorry, but there is no way in hell that the turbine company is going to be maintaining public county roads, not Dallas, Collin, or Grayson Counties (Preston Trail corridor), and they aren't going to be maintaining state or federal roads, LOL. If you are complaining about the ranch roads, I am sure they are maintaining their sufficiently for access by their equipment, which is what most of the companies do, unless specific building guidelines are stipulated in the contract. If somebody didn't do a better job of negotiating the contract so that the roads are maintained to their liking on their land, that is on them. If they are not happy with the contracted maintenance, chances are the lease has stipulated resolution practices and if not, then said folks should be in court. Due diligence works on both sides of a contract.

Firebreak? Well, on your side of the fence is a bunch of scrub that isn't on his side of the fence. At least here (90 minutes west of you), the turbine companies maintain an easement between towers (if multiple on property) if the land isn't being cultivated or grazed.

No, not everybody's lives revolve around money, but what you keep ignoring is that money is a huge factor in people allowing these on THEIR property. That is a big perk. No doubt your neighbor didn't offer to pay to have them installed in his/her property because he thought they were pretty. No. He is doing it for the $$ and it looks like your neighbor is doing quite well.

You chose against it. Your neighbor didn't. You seem terribly unhappy about his/her decision.

 

Don’t know how things work in TX, but at least in the NY county where my property is a company running heavy trucks has to post a bond that the town will redeem if they fail to repair any damage to the roads. Even my BIL who is a one man logging company had to post bond if he is going to move more than a couple log trucks worth of logs off the property.

 

go stand next to some of them and see if the noise bothers you never mind the game. even if the game don't mind, it may ruin the experience.

 

Usually the noise is more objectionable downwind of the turbines, often quite some distance away, when there is wind and they are making power. It's very common for developers to bring people close to some turbine installation in ideal conditions to "demonstrate" that they aren't noisy while they chat away. Or they will say the noise is only equivalent to a dishwasher.

Would you want to try to sleep next to your dishwasher while it's running? Read a book or listen to soft music? Listen for game in the woods with a dishwasher running in your tree stand?

Also, look at how many developers or plant owners (often not the same entities) have been sued for not adhering to their road agreements, payment agreements etc. A lot. It's really not that hard to find verifiable information, just don't expect to get it from the companies themselves or their enablers in government.

 

To add to my first post, when turbines were coming here (Kansas) I attended a seminar put on mostly by the industry, talking up the turbines. But, the last speaker was a law professor whose warning was: Landowners should be asking who will build them, who will maintain them and who will pay to take them down, but most landowners only ask how much money will they get and when will they get it.